Adam : From a man to a God

**Thousands of years ago.**

The crowd roared within the colossal arena. Two men stood in the center, swords and shields in hand.

Ken glanced at Dean. "We better give the audience a good show. You know what happens if we don't."

Dean nodded. "Exactly."

They charged at each other, their crescent-shaped swords clashing with a metallic ring. Locked in a struggle, Dean smashed Ken with his shield, sending him soaring. Ken flipped mid-air, landing gracefully on his feet.

Without hesitation, Ken hurled his shield at Dean. Dean backflipped, narrowly evading the projectile as it embedded itself halfway into the arena wall.

Ken sprinted towards Dean. Dean swung his shield, but Ken slid beneath him, grabbing Dean’s foot and yanking him down. With a swift motion, Ken raised his sword to strike, but Dean kicked him away with his other foot, propelling Ken backward.

Dean stood quickly and threw his shield at Ken. Ken caught it and flung it high out of the arena. The crowd watched as the shield disappeared from sight. Above them, the gods observed. Ragnarok watched with a straight face, hiding his excitement. He loved battles, but he didn't want the other gods to know.

One of the gods, Mior, the goddess of moments, looked concerned. She was secretly in love with Dean. They often met in secret. Dean and Ken were best friends, but something terrible had happened two months ago.

**Two months ago**

Ken arrived home, his 9-year-old daughter Eleanor running to him. He picked her up, her cheerful voice filling the air.

"Father! You're back. You won again today," Eleanor said.

Ken smiled. "Yes, daughter, I won. Guess what the reward was today."

Eleanor thought hard. "Hmm... is it food?"

Ken chuckled. "Yes, not only that. I got a day off work as a reward. It was supposed to be two, but I gave a day off for you too. We have grains and some meat."

"Yay! I don't have to work tomorrow, and we have meat!" Eleanor hugged Ken tightly. Despite his pain from the recent fight, he didn't mind. Seeing his daughter happy was worth it.

Dean, meanwhile, was a slave at Mior's temple. Mior could see everything about a person with a single touch. She used to loathe humans but changed after meeting Dean. She was curious about his view of the world. He was the first person she met who didn't hate the gods.

They often talked, with Mior dismissing the guards. She already knew everything about him but enjoyed his company. He flattered her, not as a god, but as a woman he loved. Razak, another god, sent messengers to summon men to the temple. He chose those he deemed worthy for training.

That's how Dean and Ken met. Everyone had a job, even children. Dean and Ken trained together, with Ken teaching Dean initially. Dean quickly became adept, often defeating Ken in training. They never faced each other in the arena, as all battles there were to the death.

Mior feared for Dean's life, but he won three battles in a row. To entertain the gods, warriors were given powers, but only upper-grade mortal or superior. Razak saw Dean and Ken as the best warriors and arranged their fight.

When they refused, they were punished, but as superior power holders and the strongest, it had little effect. Razak summoned them to his temple, where they knelt with scars on their backs.

"Dean, do you have any family?" Razak asked.

"No, my lord. I have no family," Dean replied.

"And Ken, you have a daughter, yes? What happened to your wife?"

Ken hesitated. "She died, killed by one of the goddesses for spilling hot tea."

Razak called for Eleanor. She tried to run to her father, but a guard held her back.

Razak touched her head. "You're worried about the child, aren't you? No need to worry."

Ken tried to move, but he couldn't. Eleanor cried as she turned to dust. "Father... what's happening... I..."

Ken screamed in agony as he watched his daughter disintegrate. Ragnarok appeared.

"Good, now you have nothing to hold you back. Mior will..." Ragnarok began, but Ken interrupted, tears streaming down his face.

"You're wrong! She was all I ever fought for. She was all I had left. You're not gods, you're monsters!"

Razak snapped his fingers, and Ken fainted.

"Take them to Mior. Let her handle this," Razak ordered. Ragnarok gave Dean a sinister look as the guards dragged them away.

At Mior's temple, she dismissed the guards. Dean was surprised by her indifferent expression.

Dean. Two months later, she still felt guilt, a feeling alien to her. She remembered Razak's words: “Do as I command, or be sealed, and Dean will be killed.”

**The present**

Dean threw his sword away and dashed towards Ken. Ken mirrored his action, discarding his shield. They sprinted at each other at incredible speeds, 220 km an hour. They leapt and struck simultaneously, creating a small sonic explosion that sent them both flying.

Dean was the first to rise, his eyes glowing faint gray. Enoch shifted in his seat for a better view. As Ken got up, his hand ignited in flames, and the crowd erupted in cheers.

"Not fair, you're using fire. You could kill me from over there," Dean remarked, smirking.

Ken returned the smile. "No, what's the fun in that? We agreed to make this entertaining."

Dean charged at Ken, leaping to strike his head. Ken rolled away and stood, aiming a kick at Dean’s face. Dean caught Ken’s leg, pulling him to the ground. Dean mounted him, raising his blades to strike, but Ken launched twin fireballs, sending Dean flying. Dean's armor was destroyed, his chest initially burnt but quickly healing.

"Hey! I thought you said you wouldn't use that," Dean shouted, rising to his feet.

"You gave me no choice. I guess that means we're going all out," Ken replied, launching fireballs.

Dean dodged, spinning and leaping , each move fluid. He threw a blade, slicing a fireball in half. Ken saw the spinning blade and dodged. Dean’s foot stomped the ground, a gray light racing towards Ken. Ken jumped, spinning left as spears and blades erupted from the ground where he stood.

Dean threw another blade, striking Ken in the chest. Ken fell to his knees, removing the blade with a bloody smile. He healed instantly. Dean conjured a bow and arrow.

Ken chuckled. "I wondered when you'd use that."

"You know me. You always said I choose the easiest way to win a duel. But this isn’t making things easier, is it?" Dean said, firing arrows rapidly.

Ken dodged with incredible speed, sending flames hurtling towards Dean. Dean conjured a shield, which began to melt under the intense heat. Despite thickening the shield, it continued to melt. Dean screamed in pain as the flames burned him. Ken stopped and walked towards Dean, who lay on the ground.

Mior fought the urge to cry, maintaining her composure as a goddess.

Dean, struggling to rise, thought, "No. If I go, I’m not going alone."

Ken turned to leave, but Dean stood, conjuring a metal bow and arrow with the sharpest point. He aimed with deadly precision. Ken sensed something, and the crowd's noise grew louder. He turned and saw Dean, burnt and healing slowly.

"You're still alive? I knew it. My greatest rival will die fighting," Ken said.

Dean fired the arrow, aiming for Ken's heart. Ken intended to catch it to intimidate Dean, but memories flooded back. The arrow struck him. Dean also remembered. He rushed to catch Ken before he fell, coughing up blood, looking at the sky with tears.

"Ele... Eleanor..." Ken whispered before dying.

Dean screamed in heartbreak. He had killed his best friend, and his lover had betrayed him. He stood, glaring at Mior.

"Why? Why did you do this?" Dean's voice trembled with rage and sorrow. "She hid our memories only to bring them back now? I... There's no point in living. She did it so I could live, but what’s the point anymore? My friend is dead. I killed him. They killed his daughter. And they’re going to get away with it just because they’re gods? They should pay!"

Dean ran towards the gods, leaping high into the sky. Midair, he conjured a shield, stepping on it, then another, ascending higher. He conjured a massive sword radiating green light at its sharp end, targeting Razak's chest. But the sword exploded, sending Dean crashing down, shards cutting him. He stood, seeing a quarter of the sword floating. It pierced his heart with incredible speed. Enoch, twiddling his fingers, controlled the sword, looking slightly disappointed.

**In the evening**

Dean's body was carried to be burned. Mior descended from the sky and instructed the guards to wait. Dean had been her slave. She touched his body, feeling all his emotional pain, confusion, and regret. She cried out, and the guards fainted from feeling her sad aura.

She remembered when Dean had asked if she would change the gods' view of humans if she could. She had said it would be a success, but she would die from overusing her powers.

Ascending into the air, glowing white, she caught the gods' and people's attention. She let out a massive explosion of light, reaching every corner of the planet. It was waves of her power, damaging nothing but the minds of every being. She slowly turned into small glowing crystals.

"I'm sorry... Dean," Mior whispered.

Humans began liking and worshiping gods. Gods no longer saw humans as lesser beings and helped them. Kasaka, a goddess, was unaffected but was sealed by others as an example. Ragna tried to make them remember, but it only angered them.

Enoch, Lilith, and Linch were unaffected, but they didn’t care as long as they were worshiped and treated like gods.

**The present**

Adam sat up in his bed, in the room he had woken up in.

"It’s been a week since Tilda and Instructor Kim came back. Sure, they said they had to convince the academy and left food to last me a month, but how long do I have to wait here?" Adam thought.

He heard the doorbell ring and rushed to open it. Tilda stood there, looking energetic and happy. In his eyes, she was beautiful.

"They agreed. You have been accepted!" Tilda exclaimed.